“What happened to you could have happened to anyone,” said Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis as he closed the session of the New Democracy Parliamentary Group, addressing MPs whose names had been drawn into the OPEKAEP affair. Commenting on the earlier remarks made by Makis Voridis — who had suggested that the European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO) “is either not doing its job properly or is doing something else entirely” — Mitsotakis stressed that serious questions remain about the way these cases were handled. He also directed sharp criticism at PASOK over the constitutional revision process, accusing the main opposition leadership of choosing not to participate meaningfully in the process and condemning what he called a “hypocritical stance” from Harilaou Trikoupi Street. “PASOK, by claiming it can pre-guarantee 180 MPs in the next Parliament, is circumventing both the spirit and the letter of the Constitution,” he emphasized.
Mitsotakis fires at PASOK over constitutional revision
During his closing remarks at the New Democracy Parliamentary Group session, Kyriakos Mitsotakis began by stating: “First, regarding the constitutional revision process, I want to once again thank our fellow MPs who participated with exceptional energy and genuine enthusiasm in the relevant committee — and with very thorough preparation. Substantial work was done, which was unfortunately undermined by the fact that, unlike in previous attempts, the opposition chose not to participate. I would also ask everyone to engage meaningfully in the plenary debate — it is an important opportunity to demonstrate the significance of the constitutional revision and the articles deemed subject to revision, as well as the qualitative difference in how our party approached this process, compared to the hypocritical stance adopted by all other parties, most notably PASOK, which has the ability to deliver 180 MPs from this Parliament for the articles it agrees with. PASOK, by claiming it can pre-guarantee 180 MPs in the next Parliament, is circumventing both the spirit and the letter of the Constitution.”
Mitsotakis on OPEKAEP: We are clearly not here to cover up any illegal activity
Commenting on the various contributions regarding OPEKAEP, the Prime Minister stressed that “we are not here to cover up any illegal activity,” adding that “it is my sincere wish that this case comes to a close soon so we can put this ordeal behind us.”
“On the matter of OPEKAEP, I want to thank all the colleagues who spoke with dignity, sincerity, and at times with emotion — which is entirely understandable. I want to acknowledge both the colleagues whose cases were archived — raising the legitimate question of why this could not have happened from the outset, when it was abundantly clear that the arguments and the case files were exceptionally weak — and the colleagues who will, with dignity, be required to provide explanations before the courts. I listened very carefully to what Makis said, as well as to the other MPs, and it is my sincere wish that this case comes to a close soon so we can put this ordeal behind us. We stand united on this — what happened to you could have happened to anyone. We are clearly not here to cover up any illegal activity, but what we are talking about here is, by its very nature, something entirely different. At the heart of what we have had the opportunity to discuss in the past is the question of where an MP’s boundaries lie, and how we can better safeguard the public administration so that MPs can carry out their duties in a way that guarantees transparency and accountability.
As for the European Public Prosecutor’s Office, there is no going back from this institution — but there are legitimate questions about the way it handled these cases. Prosecutors, too, are judged by results; their job is to bring well-constructed cases to trial, and the outcome has shown that this work was not carried out as it should have been. Thank you all once again — I value these discussions and we will of course continue them with the same consistency,” Kyriakos Mitsotakis concluded.
